I returned to the classroom and immediately sought out Danbal to find out how far this strange rumor had spread.

“Ju, Ju-eun. What’s going on?”

And seeing her cowed gaze and attitude, I could tell right away.

It was already too late!

‘Damn it.’

Feeling a throbbing headache, I put a hand to my forehead.

‘Everyone who needs to know already knows.’

Even if there were more people who didn’t know, it wouldn’t make a difference. By tomorrow, Danbal will have blabbed about it all over town anyway!

“No… it’s nothing…”

Somehow feeling exhausted, I lost the will to do anything.

Leaving Danbal behind, I returned to my seat.

“What’s wrong, Lee Ju Eun? Are you sick?”

Yoo Hee Na examined my complexion and waved a hand in front of my face.

“She’s out of it.”

As if to bring me to my senses, Yoo Hee Na grabbed my shoulders and shook my body, but my soul had already left me, so I just limply swayed.

‘What do I do now?’

As if being the Mad Dog wasn’t enough, now I’m World Rank 0?

No matter how I thought about it, it wasn’t a title I could handle. I heard all sorts of things just for being one of the Four Heavenly Kings, and now something even worse had happened.

‘At least it’s a relief that Yoo Hee Na isn’t misunderstanding.’

At the hospital, Sung Ji Chan told me that a threatening call had come on the day I was kidnapped. He said Yoo Hee Na was with him then too.

Then Yoo Hee Na should also know why such a strange rumor started, so she probably wouldn’t believe the nonsense about me being Sung Ji Chan’s girlfriend.

In reality, Yoo Hee Na didn’t show any hostility towards me. Maybe she just hadn’t heard the rumor yet.

‘This won’t do. I need a plan.’

I needed to take care of this before the rumor could spread out of control.

‘To do that, it’d be good to talk to the others.’

I decided to seek out the other parties involved in the rumor with me.

First, Sung Ji Chan.

When break time came again, I left the classroom and called Sung Ji Chan. But…

‘Huh? Why isn’t he answering?’

Strange. He’s not one to ignore calls.

I had no choice but to ask Yoo Hee Na.

“Do you know where Sung Ji Chan is?”

“Ji Chan?”

Yoo Hee Na blinked.

“He’s not answering his phone?”

“Yeah.”

“Really? That’s odd…”

Seeing her tilt her head, it seemed Yoo Hee Na didn’t know either.

“If it’s this time, maybe he’s in the infirmary? He usually is.”

Well, that would be just like Sung Ji Chan.

‘Then I need to go to the old school building.’

Ugh. It’s far and I don’t feel like going.

After a moment of deliberation, I made a clean decision.

‘Let’s go somewhere else first.’

My next target was…

“…What is it? I told you not to act like you know me at school.”

Seol Yu Hwa.

Her appearance was a mess, as if she had gotten into it with other kids again today.

Seol Yu Hwa’s eyes flashed as she looked at me.

“Did you find out something about Yu Bin?”

That’d be nice, but unfortunately not. Most of all, I was just discharged from the hospital yesterday, you know? Where would I find the time for that!

…As if I could say that to her. I smiled cringingly and spoke.

“No, this time it’s about me.”

“You?”

Seol Yu Hwa made a blatant show of disinterest.

Oh come on, that’s too much.

But in this relationship, I was always the inferior one, so I tried to smile brightly.

“Don’t be like that. Won’t you listen to what I have to say?”

I explained to Seol Yu Hwa why I had come looking for her from beginning to end.

And then…

“What? You’re World Rank 0? Hahahahaha.”

Having heard everything, Seol Yu Hwa laughed uproariously.

No, I know it’s ridiculous too, okay? I thought it was absurd myself, but seeing someone else openly mock it hurt my feelings.

Only after laughing to her heart’s content did Seol Yu Hwa pretend to listen to me.

“I roughly get the situation. So, what’s your real business?”

I finally sighed and opened my mouth.

“Do you have any intention of revealing your identity?”

In other words, what I wanted was for Seol Yu Hwa to return to her true self and announce that she was the ‘real’ World Rank 0.

Seol Yu Hwa slightly furrowed her brow.

“Reveal my identity?”

Let’s not get scared. I’m an adult. An adult…

I calmly nodded.

“You said you found traces of Yu Bin a while ago. Then won’t Yu Bin return to her place soon too?”

So you need to return to your original form.

If Seol Yu Hwa keeps pretending to be Seol Yu Bin, even if Seol Yu Bin tries to come back to her original place, she won’t be able to.

Of course, my real goal was to clear up the misunderstanding that I was World Rank 0.

Seol Yu Hwa’s expression turned serious, as if it was a problem worth thinking about.

“…I understand what you mean.”

Thank goodness she understood.

“But I intend to continue this life for the time being. I can’t reveal my identity.”

“What?”

I was startled by Seol Yu Hwa’s words.

“Then what about me? You’re okay with me being mistaken for World Rank 0?”

Seol Yu Hwa paused for a moment before speaking.

“That’s…”

“That’s?”

“Something you’ll have to deal with yourself.”

This girl, seriously?

Having regained her composure, Seol Yu Hwa spoke nonchalantly.

“Resolve your own rumors. It has nothing to do with me. Can’t you just prove that it’s not you?”

I couldn’t refute her because she wasn’t wrong.

In the end, my conversation with Seol Yu Hwa ended without any gains.

‘I should have gone to find Sung Ji Chan first.’

Well, I’m not sure if that conversation will go well either… Anyway, I felt like I had wasted precious break time for nothing.

Since break time was ending again, I trudged back to the classroom.

No, I tried to go back.

“Wait a minute! Lee Ju Eun!”

An unfamiliar voice stopped me.

‘What?’

I turned my head in puzzlement. There stood a guy I’d never seen before. Based on the color of his name tag, he seemed to be a year older than me.

“L-Lee Ju Eun! I have something to say to you!”

The guy spoke with a stiff face.

The kids around us whispered and stared at me and the guy.

‘What situation is this now?’

Who the heck is that guy to know me?

As I rolled my eyes in confusion, I heard the other kids talking.

“What, what?”

“Could it be a confession?”

What?

I was appalled.

‘That’s ridiculous.’

I looked at the guy in front of me. Slightly flushed cheeks, tense face, serious gaze.

‘…It can’t really be a confession, right?’

No way.

I took a step back, denying reality. But before I knew it, the kids who had been standing around had encircled me and the guy, watching us.

‘No, what is this atmosphere, seriously!’

The whispers grew louder. I looked for an escape route, sweating anxiously, but there wasn’t a single gap to slip through.

In the end, I was about to be subjected to a public confession against my will.

‘Does this make sense?’

I have to receive a confession from someone I don’t even know? Is this also a sin of being possessed in Inso?

‘I really want to die.’

I clenched my fists to keep from screaming.

And finally, the guy’s mouth opened.

“Are…”

Are?

“Are you World Rank 0?”

Huh?

Why is he suddenly asking that?

The surroundings fell silent at the guy’s words. I, too, was momentarily stunned and couldn’t say anything.

‘What does me being World Rank 0 have to do with a confession?’

Then I suddenly realized.

‘…Could this be?’

As I stood dumbfounded, the guy shouted.

“Come at me, World Rank 0! Fight me!”

Then he took off his school uniform top and threw it aside. Wearing only a white t-shirt, the guy took a fighting stance with a triumphant air.

That’s right. The guy was a delinquent punk who staked his life on rank.

‘This is crazy.’

Finally grasping the situation, I buried my face in my hands.

‘My life is ruined…’

Of course. What confession?

I don’t know if I should consider this fortunate or not.

Deflated, I shook my head from side to side.

“What! Are you refusing to fight me!”

Refusing or not… I don’t know how to fight in the first place.

‘I just want to abandon everything.’

It’s been a while since I’ve had this thought. I let out a sigh and spoke.

“Just say you won, mister.”

“What?”

“Please be World Rank 0.”

I don’t even feel like responding. I waved my hand as if shooing a fly, then pushed through the kids surrounding us and left the circle. Forget it, let’s just hurry back to the classroom.

“Lee Ju Eun! I will definitely defeat you someday!”

I heard such a cry from behind, but I ignored it.

I thought everything had ended like that.

But unfortunately, my trials were just beginning.

“Lee Ju Eun! I challenge you!”

The next day. As soon as I arrived at school, I was greeted by countless challengers.

“No! I’m first!”

“You’re kidding. I got here before you?”

“Get lost, all of you! I’m the one fighting first!”

…What is this?

I looked at the guys crowding my seat with confused eyes.

Then I heard the kids whispering in my ears.

“That’s World Rank 0…”

No, I’m not!

‘I’m really going crazy!’

I felt like tearing my hair out. The guys shouted at me.

“So, who are you going to fight first!”

I’m not fighting anyone!

It was truly maddening.

‘Forget it, I don’t know anymore!’

In the end, I gave up on everything, spun around, and dashed out of the classroom.

“Oh, she’s running away!”

“Catch her!”

Uwaaaaah.

The guys chased after me with a roar.

‘Get lost, all of you!’

I ran, shedding tears of blood in my heart.

‘Wait, this situation is familiar.’

While running as if my lungs would burst, I suddenly had that thought.

When was the last time I ran like this…?

Running like crazy, I found myself in front of the old school building before I knew it.

I went straight into the second infirmary.

“Teacher!”

“Oh, uh?”

“I’m going to hide for a bit!”

In a hurry to conceal myself, I hastily drew back the curtain of the first bed in front of me.

And at that moment, I finally realized.

‘Ah, this is that. The game of finding Choon Ja…’

That’s right. Behind the curtain, Seon Woo Jin was sleeping peacefully…